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In their latest podcast Niall and Roy invite Dr Penny Dash, the new chair of NHS England, to join them.

Within weeks of her appointment the secretary of state announced that NHS England was for the chop and that he would subject the NHS to a major reorganisation. But Penny is unphased and says the current system is riddled with complexity and duplication and could not have survived, although she admits with the Department running everything we could well be back to the old challenges of too much political involvement. 

She also makes clear there is much to do to make the Integrated Care Boards effective commissioners.  Making the NHS more efficient is a clear priority – workforce numbers have gone up, but activity has not, and now she says we have more operating theatre staff than any other country in the world. 

So, with only limited extra funding, how will the new NHS leadership achieve the promised transformation – according to Penny, better allocation of resources, better operational management, increased productivity, and a real embrace of technology which she describes as ‘a bit of a magic wand’. 

Listen now!

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In this latest podcast Niall and Roy talk to Dr Bill Kirkup CBE, who has headed some of the major enquiries into failing NHS services, including paediatric cardiac surgery in Oxford. Liverpool Community Services, and the high-profile investigations into maternity services at Morecambe Bay and East Kent Hospitals.

In a frank discussion, Bill reveals that he does not believe enquiries have made things better or stopped the pattern of failure. He says that since his investigation into Morecambe Bay the problems in maternity have appeared at an accelerating rate. And he is adamant that while these enquiries can help to expose what has gone wrong in a particular Trust and provide vindication for families,  they are not equipped to bring about improvements. Bill argues that the failings identified in these Trusts are systemic and national, not particular and local. They are symptoms of wider cultural problems.

He is also scathing about the value of the operational recommendations that have come out of some enquiries. He points out that there are now literally hundreds of maternity recommendations which has led to a situation in which Trusts have to employ people with clipboards just going round ticking off which ones they have done.

Since the recording of this podcast the Secretary of State Wes Streeting has announced a national investigation into maternity services. However, Bill  Kirkup joins for an extended discussion with his reaction to yet another maternity review

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In their latest podcast Niall Dickson and Roy Lilley are joined by former health secretary, foreign secretary, and chancellor,  Sir Jeremy Hunt. 

In a fascinating insight, reflecting on his years in power, Sir Jeremy reveals how terrified he was to find himself responsible for the NHS knowing nothing much beyond his own constituency issues.

Over time he says he learned how to work the system to secure more resources for the NHS from the Treasury.  He says being Foreign Secretary was great fun and you were not blamed for anything, while being health secretary was a privilege, but you were blamed for everything. 

He feels that having NHS England as an arm’s length body worked during his time, and that Wes Streeting needs to be careful what he wishes for in ordering its abolition.

Sir Jeremy admits cuts to social care went too far in 2010 and says he wanted to do more but was moved on before he could follow up his 2019 NHS cash injection. 

He remains passionate about patient safety and calls for no fault medical negligence, the abolition of all NHS targets and a single budget at local level for older people receiving NHS and social care services. 

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In this podcast on social care reform with Niall Dickson and Roy Lilley,  Sir Andrew Dilnot, the former Director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies pulls no punches when it comes to the missed opportunities of successive governments. 

As the author of the definitive 2014 report on social care reform, he shows his frustration and dismay at this government’s failure to tackle a crisis that is now leaving millions of vulnerable older people without the support they need, and at the same time crippling the NHS.  And Sir Andrew reveals how, if only Boris Johnson had remained Prime Minister for a little longer, serious reform could have been achieved. He points out that the extra demand for social care is a fantastic achievement created by longer lives but argues that there is a need for a  change in public attitudes and for government to grow up and get on with it. If they don’t, he predicts they will not deal with the challenges facing the NHS.

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What happens when a leading banker groomed in the disciplines and attitudes of the private sector finds himself in charge of the NHS in England? 

Surely he will be highly sceptical at least, suspicious and critical at best? 

But no - the story of Richard Meddings the outgoing NHS England Chair is of a Damascene conversion. 

In this podcast with Niall Dickson and Roy Lilley, Richard reveals himself as an arch defender of the NHS at every level including the achievements of the about to be abolished NHS England.

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